Long Night
by reine-des-rythmes
Summary: Dramatic nakamaship. Ummm... a really long - for me - author's note. Annnd some cursing. And lotsa blood. Written like a good, old-fashioned western - good guys ride into a quiet little town, only to be ambushed by ... Click to read more.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is a long story... I was surprised by how long I could draw it out. This first chapter doesn't give much away. It _does not_ get into the action. It is simply pure, unadulterated exposition. Now when was the last time anyone around here did some of that?!!

Anywaaaaay... well, I'll say more in the next chapter.

But wait! Disclaimers: THIS HAS A LOT OF ANGST AT THE END (of the story, not this chapter). IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH NAKAMASHIP ANGST, PLEASE DON'T READ THIS. In addition to the angst, there is some language, thus the T rating. And please understand that no one is hitting on anyone in this fanfic. I pair no one with no one, kay?

Oh, and I don't own One Piece. :)

(For iluvstorms: Brook's "hovering technique" is his ability to walk on water since he is so light. I know he has this ability, but I couldn't find out what it was called. Thus, hovering technique.)

Japanese words are in _italics_. I tried to use them correctly, spell them correctly, but hey, I don't know a whit of Japanese except what I've learned from this show. Don't hate me if they're wrong. I just can't write Franky saying "bro" or Sanji "moss-head." It's not... right, somehow. Also, not all _italics_ are Japanese words - sometimes they are there for emphasis or intensity. You're smart; you'll figure it out.

I'll stop now. Until next chapter, dear reader.

* * *

Chapter One

"Luffy!" shrieked the little reindeer in terror as his playmate rocketed himself over to the new island, one lanky, rubbery arm securely clasping the doctor to his chest. Tony Tony Chopper, a Devil Fruit user, wasn't really scared that he'd fall into the sea… but sometimes Luffy didn't think before he acted…

The shriek quickly turned into giggles as Luffy's "Wahooooo!" echoed over the sparkling water that sped past beneath them. The two friends laughed together loudly, barely able to hear each other above the whooshing sound of the wind in their ears. A moment later, Chopper noticed that the white walls of the town ahead were getting closer and closer, and his panic returned. "Luffy! The wall!" he said.

"What?" Luffy asked carelessly, his grin so expansive that it squeezed his eyes shut.

"The wall! The wall!"

"Wha – " Luffy's grin fell. He opened his eyes and saw the wall. Then the grin returned. "HOLD ON, CHOPPER!" he cried in utter joy, swinging them around so they faced back out to sea. The reindeer's average eyes could barely see the speck that was Sunny-Go, but his superb nose told him exactly where Nami, Usopp, and Zoro were on the deck. "Luffy… what are you…" Chopper said, craning his neck to see how close they were to the wall. "AHHH!!!"

"_GOMU GOMU NO… FUUSEN_!" cried the rubber man, and his body inflated to outrageous proportions. When the two friends hit the wall a split second later, Chopper simply sank into Luffy's balloon-like torso, and Luffy took all of the impact. They bounced off the wall and fell five meters down to the street below. When Chopper stood up again, he shifted into his Walk Point and looked around for an audience to his captain's crazy entrance, his blue nose twitching. Bits of plaster and stone had broken off the wall when they hit it and now lay scattered in the street. Luffy had stood up and was brushing himself off.

"Are you hurt, Luffy?" called Chopper, satisfied that they had not alerted any of the townspeople to their presence.

He laughed. "No, Chopper. Let's find some meat!"

"Oi, Luffy. I don't eat meat!"

The laughter continued. "Meat, meat, meat…" the rubber man said as they walked down the street.

"_BAKA_! LUFFY!"

* * *

"_Baka_ Luffy," muttered the orange-haired navigator on the Thousand Sunny, her hand over her eyes. Lifting the megaphone to her mouth, she yelled, "Everyone! All hands on deck!"

A previously snoring Roronoa Zoro growled that he was already on deck, no need for a bitch like her to scream at him about it. Unfortunately, he finished his comment just as Sanji exited the kitchen.

"What did you say to Nami-san, _marimo_?"

"Nothing, ero-cook. Wanna make something out of it?"

Swords were drawn and the men were snarling at one another before Nami could get over to them and knock their heads together. Once that task was completed, she turned to Robin, Usopp, Franky, and Brook. "We're approaching Yuya Island. It has a small Marine force; nothing we can't handle, except our _baka_-captain grabbed Chopper and rocketed them both over there, with who knows what consequences."

Usopp and Franky each had a hand over their eyes to block the bright sunlight and were squinting in the direction of the island. "That far, eh?" said Franky to the sniper.

"Hmmm. He's much stronger than he used to be."

"Indeed."

"We should build a slingshot that can shoot as far as Luffy can throw himself."

"Aye – "

"Pay attention!" screeched Nami, knocking them both out with her fists. "It's not a good thing!"

"Hm," Nico Robin smiled. "Perhaps one of us should go after them, Navigator-san."

Nami gave her a grateful thank-god-one-of-them-has-some-sense look. "_Arigatou_, _oneechan_."

Zoro and Sanji had recovered from Nami's blows. The swordsman said, "I'll go," resignedly.

"Oh, no, you won't," said Nami, frowning. "You couldn't find your way back to the ship on your own, and neither could those other idiots." A thought crossed her mind – Sanji had watch, and she really didn't need Zoro getting himself lost (again). She grinned evilly. "If Zoro leaves the ship, you," she pointed to Sanji, "must go with him."

Both men wore stunned expressions. "But – " they said at the same time.

"_No arguments_." Her word was final.

Sanji shook himself a little. "Hai, Nami-_san_! I will make sure the bastard doesn't get lost for youuuu!"

"_Arigatou_, Sanji-_kun_."

"Evil, money-grabbing, bossy hag."

"_What was that, bastard?_"

"And they're fighting again," Nami sighed. "Usopp, Franky – _Nani??_"

The two were busy hammering together a huge slingshot not unlike the one they had built at Thriller Bark. They had even gotten Robin to help them, for as the archeologist lounged in her chair with her book and tea, four hands had sprouted from the device to hold tools.

Nami's temper flared. "Pay attention, you idiots!"

"Nami, I could help," said a calm voice to her left. Brook stood erect before his commanding officer. "I could go over there now, using my hovering technique."

"Brook! Yes, yes, please!"

"First, though, may I see your – "

Nami's fist cracked his skull. "No, you may not!"

A moment later, an unabashed Brook flew from the ship to catch up with his comrades. Zoro and Sanji were still fighting on the deck. Usopp and Franky had gone below to coax more speed out of Sunny-Go because they had realized they were out of supplies to finish their newest project, so they wanted to get to the island as soon as possible. Robin was quietly laughing at Nami's dark expression, for she knew that the fiery woman's temper was just a mask for the deep tenderness she felt for all her crewmates. "I'm sure all will turn out for the best, Navigator-_san_," she said serenely.

"Oiya, Robin," Nami said, shaking her head. "Why did we all join up with that idiot?"

"We may never know."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Crap, guys, I'm so sorry. This is moar exposition. I know, I know. "Get to the good stuff, Reine!" Oi. Look, I already wrote the whole story, okay? I'm in the editing stage, and I told you it was a long story, and... blah blah.

I swair the next chapter will start the action. Trust me, I've already written it. :)

* * *

The Thousand Sunny docked just as the sun set on the water. The large town was tiered, with three levels. The upper two sat above high white walls, and to get from one tier to the next, the citizens rode wooden platforms that shuttled up and down with a series of rope pulleys. The creaking from their movement could easily be heard from the dock. The lights of the town were just coming on, and a warm golden light issued from a few of the closer taverns on the first tier.

"Eh, I'm getting a drink," Zoro said, one arm resting on his sword hilts. He started to walk down the gangplank, but a shout from the crow's nest made him pause.

"Oi! _Marimo_! Where are you going?"

"Why should I tell you, shitty cook?"

"Nami-_san_ has made me swear to –"

Zoro's face transformed into a frightening visage. "Damn that woman." He turned to gaze up at the blond. "Don't follow me, bastard," he called up, then turned around and continued towards the town.

"Shit! Oi! _Baka_!"

The boat rocked as Sanji landed on the deck. He ran after Zoro, whose eye twitched. They made a point of not acknowledging the other was there.

They walked in silence. Sanji, who had stuffed his hands in his pockets, brought one out to blow smoke rings, which happened to collect in Zoro's path. The swordsman, who was walking with his eyes closed, did not notice this until he took a deep breath in the middle of the smoke cloud. He fell to his knees and started to hack and cough. When he was done, he leapt at the cook.

They scuffled for a moment before separating to nurse their bruises. Then they continued walking.

After some minutes, Sanji asked, "Where exactly are we going, _marimo_?"

Zoro opened his eyes again. They were on a path in the woods. Behind them the lights of the town lit the path. Ahead was darkness.

"_Nani_? What happened to the taverns?"

"Oi," Sanji said. "I didn't realize your problem was this bad. Have you talked to Chopper about it?"

"You… dartboard brow!"

"Damn swordsman!"

When Zoro and Sanji finally entered a tavern, Zoro headed straight for the bar, shouting to the barkeep that he needed a tankard of the man's strongest drink, fast. Sanji straightened his rumpled collar and searched for – There! A beautiful maiden in need of a strong man!

Zoro smiled into his tankard when he heard the ringing sound of a hand slapping Sanji's face.

* * *

"Yahoooo! _Sugoooi_! Chopper, Brook, look at that!"

"What is it? Oh! _Sugoi_!"

"Hmm? Yohohoho!"

The trio was staring with stupid grins at the Biggest. Pie. Ever. It was six meters in diameter and two thick, and had cherry filling. Luffy and Chopper were drooling, and Brook would have been if he'd had any salivary glands.

The man beside it was shouting to the passersby that he and his family baked this pie for the festival in their town of Yuya, and that he was holding a contest in a few minutes to see who could eat the most of it in ten minutes.

"Yosh! I'll do it!" said Luffy.

"Luffy! I want to try first!"

The youthful captain chuckled. "Sure, Chopper. Do your best!"

"Aye!"

The little doctor morphed into his Heavy Point and approached the baker. "I'm going to eat this whole pie!" he announced.

The man jumped back. "A gorilla?" he asked, terrified.

"I'm a reindeer, damn it!"

Luffy and Brook watched as the timer started. Chopper used his huge hands to gather pieces of pie and shovel them into his mouth. When the timer rang, Chopper had eaten only a fifth of the pie, and Luffy had to carry him to a bench so he wouldn't get sick. "Was it tasty, Chopper?" the rubber man asked, laughing.

Tears leaked from Chopper's eyes. "So… good… I wan' more!"

Luffy laughed loudly.

"Okay, _ji-chan_, I want to try!"

The timer started, and a moment later Luffy, five times his normal width, sat down, still chewing. Once he swallowed his last bite, he threw his head back and laughed, his eyes squinting at the sky. "Yosha! I did it!"

The townspeople who had watched his inhalation of the pie stood speechless. The baker blinked many times, and then said, "Con… con… Congratulations! We have a winner!" The crowd erupted in surprised cheers. Luffy laughed with them, and then slowly, everyone dispersed.

"Yohohoho! What next, _senchou_?" asked Brook.

"I dunno," said Luffy. "Let's go that way!"

* * *

"Robin, where did Nami go?" Usopp asked.

The dark-haired woman frowned. "I don't know, Longnose-_kun_. She was here a moment ago – aha. There she is."

The navigator jumped down the last few steps from the crow's nest to the deck. "Where the hell did Sanji go?" she cried. "He was supposed to be on watch!"

Robin cocked her head. "I believe he went into town with Swordsman-_san_, as you ordered."

"Damn!" Nami said. "Those idiots – !" She sighed. "Usopp, it's now your turn."

"Wait, N-N-Nami! Why do I have to stay? We were just coming to ask you for… some… m-money… Aieeee!" the sniper yelped, jumping behind Robin's chair.

"What did you say?"

"_Aneki_! Look at our Suuupah Stag Beetle, Version 2.0!" said Franky, posing beside the creation.

Nami rubbed her temples. "Ay ay ay, that's gonna need to be cleaned up –"

"Doesn't it look supah? Now, I want you to be serious with me for a moment," he said, putting his arm around her shoulder. "Can't you just imagine how good a protection for this ship this would be? I know it takes up a lot of space now, but it could be sleek and out of sight, if you could just lend us a little bit…"

Nami peered at him. "Just how much is a 'little bit'?"

"Five thousand beri."

"NO!" Her fist connected solidly with the cyborg's head. "What the hell are you thinking? Do you think money grows like mikan around here? Absolutely not! You two didn't build that to protect the ship; you built it for fun!" She stomped off, muttering under her breath about the stupidity of boys with their… weapons.

"Please, Nami!" Usopp followed her and begged some more for the money, and in desperation he grabbed onto her leg. She tried alternately shaking him off and pounding his head with her fist, but nothing seemed to work.

"Fine, I give in," she said dramatically. Usopp sprang up and thanked her quickly, then ran away. Nami just sank to sit on the deck, staring blankly in front of her. "Oi, Robin. What are we going to do with all of them?"

The archeologist smiled. "How about we visit the town too, Navigator-_san_? There's a carnival. It'll be good for you to clear your head."

"What? What about the ship? Who'll protect it?"

"Hm. I'll keep an eye on it," said Robin, sprouting eyes on a few of the walls.

"Robin… you save us…" Nami said thankfully. The two women walked off the ship together and entered the well-lit city.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Hm. A much longer chapter. The plot awakens, stretches, and pokes its head out of the cave. Maybe it even lumbers out into the sunshine. I dunno. The metaphor is too difficult to maintain. My creative side is sleeping.

Uh, no more exposition - yay?

We have some _italics_ representing people's thoughts in this one. Just throwing a few curve balls to make sure you're still awake, dear reader.

* * *

Chopper walked steadily beside Luffy and could hear Brook over to Luffy's left side. Fortunately, none of the townspeople had been afraid of Brook; everyone assumed he was just wearing a really good costume for the carnival. After the pie-eating contest, the three of them had wandered the streets playing many games and trying lots of new (and free) foods. The smells had long ago overwhelmed Chopper's blue nose, but he felt safe with Luffy and Brook right there. The crowd had grown as the night set in, and now it was difficult to move without bumping into someone.

The crowd pressed in on them, and Luffy laid his hand on Chopper's back. They pushed through the swell of people easily and the crowd dissipated.

"_Nani_…" asked Luffy, looking up and down the street they were on. Back the way they had come, there were remnants of the crowd, which seemed to be moving away from them. Down the street there were no more vendors, just closed stores with dark windows.

"I think we reached the end of the festival, _senchou_," said Brook.

"Aye. I agree."

"Oh, okay. Let's go back! I want to eat the pie again!"

"Luffy, _baka_! You can't eat it twice!"

"Yohohoho! Yohohoho!"

As the three of them turned around to return to the carnival, something made Chopper's fur stand on end. He swung his deer head to tell Luffy something was wrong, but he was interrupted by a heavy net weighed with stones catching him and throwing him down the street. He could only keep his eyes open long enough after that to see Brook tangled in a _kairouseki_ net identical to his own.

_Luffy!…_ he thought as he lost consciousness.

* * *

In the same moment that Chopper had turned to tell him something, Luffy instinctively glanced over his shoulder and jumped as quickly as he could. His _nakama_ were caught up in nets that felt like that mystery rock, seastone, that Crocodile had used for his cage in the bananadile room. The net meant for Luffy harmlessly zipped through the air where he had been only milliseconds before, then it fell in a clump meters away.

Sounds of surprise from their attackers reached his ears, but he didn't grin at his small victory. Instead, he landed between them and his trapped crewmates. "Oi! Who are you assholes?"

"We are the Argos Bounty Hunters," said a deep male voice. "And you are our target, Monkey D. Luffy."

"Eh? You want my bounty? What did you do to my _nakama_?"

"We simply caught them in _kairouseki_ nets. We don't care about them. They're worthless."

Luffy's face grew dark. "Maybe to you."

The voice laughed cruelly. "Of course, of course. I'm sure they mean so much more to you, _Mugiwara no_ Luffy. In fact," he paused, "I'm counting on the fact that they do.

"You see, at this moment all over this town of Yuya, your crewmates are being captured. And once we capture all of them, you will have no choice but to turn yourself over to us."

Luffy made a tiny choking sound. "What? My _nakama_? _What are you doing to them?_"

The voice laughed again, and the man it belonged to stepped out from the shadows of his men. They stood shoulder to shoulder and crossed the entire street, blocking any escape. The man stepped into the light of a nearby streetlamp, and Luffy saw that he held two long spears decorated with blue and green feathers crossed in front of his chest. It was then that he noticed all of the other bounty hunters held similar spears.

"What's with those spears?" he asked, a crease forming between his brows. "They look lame."

The man laughed louder, which made Luffy's frown deepen. "These spears? They are your downfall, Strawhat! They are weapons of the finest quality; they will be the manner in which I make a name for mysel-"

"Shut up! I don't care!" the rubber man cried. "You tied up Chopper and Brook, and you're going to pay! I'm going to kick your ass!

"_Gomu Gomu no… Pistol!_"

With the force of a gun, Luffy's fist shot through the air, straight towards the man's head. The man didn't flinch, and Luffy grinned. This was going to be too easy.

And then, inexplicably, his hand grew limp and slowed down. The man started laughing that obnoxious laugh again as Luffy's wrist, and then his forearm, started to withdraw from the attack to snap back to his side. "What the hell? What's going on? _Gomu Gomu no… Gatling_!"

Again, his fists flew like bullets towards his attackers, but none reached their targets. Just as each got close, his fingers would get tired and loosen and his arm would be repelled. "What is doing that?!!" he exclaimed.

"That… is the power of these spears, _Mugiwara no _Luffy. They, like the nets that now trap your friends, are made of _kairouseki_." He chuckled darkly. "For you, this time, there will be no escape."

* * *

"All this walking around has worn me out, Robin."

"Hm. Perhaps if you didn't have to carry so many bags, you wouldn't be as tired."

"Robin, Robin. How will I get through our next journey if I don't have new clothes? I have a bounty now. I have to keep changing my appearance so that no one will recognize and kidnap me!" said Nami woefully.

The older woman hid a grin at her friend's vanity. "I see, Navigator-_san_. Then shall we return to Sunny-Go?"

Nami nodded gratefully, three shopping bags slung over her shoulder and three swinging in her other hand. Robin walked beside her, but then halted.

"What is it, Robin?"

The older woman had turned her head slightly to the left, as though listening. Her eyes suddenly grew wide and she spun around. Nami followed her gaze – to see a bunch of men with spears advancing toward them. "_N-n-nani_?" Nami gasped. "What is this, some sort of … part of the carnival… a parade…?"

"Nami! It's _kairouseki_!" exclaimed Robin, backing away from the men.

"What? _Kairouseki_? The spears…"

Nami glanced at her friend, and saw the fear in the woman's blue eyes as she stared at the men. Robin had lifted her hands and crossed her wrists in front of her as though to attack, but the redhead's quick mind realized that such an attack would be useless, and possibly detrimental to their situation.

She was on her own.

"Alright, Robin. You stay back. I'll handle this," she stated firmly with a tiny smirk on her face. Robin closed her eyes and nodded, stepping further back to stand behind her.

The group of men had stopped moving forward and looked confusedly at the Perfect Climatact assembled in Nami's hands. Murmurs shivered through the crowd.

A leader spoke up. "You are the pirates Cat Burglar Nami and Demon Child Nico Robin of Monkey D. Luffy's pirate crew?"

"Aye," Nami responded, almost amiably, and Heat Ball and Cool Ball leaked from her staff unbeknownst to their opponents. She twirled it affectionately, stirring up the air currents. "What do you want?"

"We are here to capture you! We are the Argos Bounty Hunters, and we have been ordered to keep you here until our captain's task is complete! You cannot win!" cried the men, shaking their spears at them.

"Hm. Can't win, eh?" Nami's smirk grew. "I very much doubt that." She heard a weak chuckle from behind her. Robin was feeling strong again. "What do you think, _onee-chan_?"

"The odds of them winning? Negligible, Navigator-_san_."

"We will not let you leave this spot! Do not doubt our strength!" One of them foolishly threw his spear at Robin. Lightning-fast, Nami spun her staff to come down hard on the shaft as it passed her, slamming it into the ground. _How dare they try that?_

"_Kairouseki_?" she asked murderously. She pointed the Climatact at them. "What makes you think you can just toss such dangerous things like that at my _nakama_ and get away with it?" The men, shocked by her reflexes, stood dumbfounded.

"How did she… That speed! Right out of the air! ..."

"In your future, I forecast cloudy weather," said Nami, now spinning the Climatact with a vengeance. "… with 100% chance of thunderstorms. _Thunderbolt… Tempo!_"

A minute later, Nami and Robin began picking their way through the scorched bodies, with Robin leaning carefully on Nami's shoulder. The nearness of the spears was enough to weaken her body, and she was grateful for the navigator's support. Nami, on the other hand, was confidently seething. "How _dare_ they. And what the hell did they mean, 'keep us here until their captain's task was complete'? If they were bounty hunters, why didn't they want our bounties?"

"Maybe they did want our bounties," replied Robin. "The wanted posters say Dead or Alive, so they don't have to kill us to get the money. Just capture us."

"But… something's not right…" Nami fell silent, thinking hard. Her eyes watched the ground carefully, steering both of them around the _kairouseki_ so Robin wouldn't get hurt.

Robin also pondered the men's interesting choice of words. _'We will not let you leave this spot!'…_ _They'd have to take us elsewhere to collect a bounty… Why would they be so insistent that we stay here? And where did they get so much _kairouseki –

"Luffy!" she shouted suddenly.

"_Nani_?" asked Nami.

"_Senchou-san_ and Doctor_-san_! They're alone!"

Nami quickly grasped her meaning. She left her friend to stand alone and fell upon the closest bounty hunter. She grabbed the front of his shirt and began to shake him violently. "Wake up! Wake up, damn it!"

The man sputtered for a moment and came to. Upon seeing Nami's face, he pushed away in terror. "I'm sorry! Don't hurt me again, weather witch!"

"I won't hurt you if and only if you answer my questions correctly: Where are the rest of your crewmembers? Do all of you have these spears?"

"Y-y-y-y-yes, th-these are the sp-sp-spears that _S-senchou _said would be able t-t-to defeat th-the Strawhats, because you have so many Devil Fruit users! All of us are required to carry them!" answered the cowering man.

Nami's eyes widened with dread. "And… where are your crewmates? Your captain?"

"_Senchou_ sent the women's division after your men in the taverns, and he himself took the largest division to get Monkey D–"

"How many men?" Nami asked him in a whisper. She could hear Robin's heavy breathing behind her, and she knew it wasn't just from the seastone. They had come to the same conclusion.

Chopper, Brook, and Luffy were all Devil Fruit users. They had no protection against the _kairouseki_ spears. And with the largest division against them, they had little to no chance of survival if help didn't arrive fast.

"One hundred –"

Nami didn't let him finish. She dropped him and started to run, reassembling the Climatact. "Come on, Robin!" she shouted. "Hold on, Luffy, Chopper! Brook!" _Please be okay!_

Robin voiced an affirmative and ran after her, pushing herself to ignore the weakening effect of the spears littering the ground beneath her feet. _We'll get there in time. We always do_, she convinced herself. _We just have to run…_


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Wheeee angst! Kind of a short chapter, though. I'd apologize, but... I'm saving the awesome for the next chapter. Which will be long. :)

Um, what else? ... O.o ... Oh, yeah, er, the end of the chapter. It's... cheesy. I originally intended to make the particularly cheesy section a drabble on its own, but soon after writing it I got depressed and hated it and deleted it. And then I wanted to write that particular part again, but the moment was gone, you know? Of course you do, dear reader, for you wouldn't be here reading this if you didn't write your own stuff. So I shoved it in this story. Rather conspicuously, to be quite honest. Oh, well. Enjoi~

* * *

Sanji had been rejected by all eight women in the tavern and was chatting away his depression with the barkeep. He elegantly sipped a glass of wine and sent a glance toward Zoro's snoring form. He knew the bastard wasn't unconscious (unlike others who had slid under the table), because he never actually got drunk. He'd just fallen asleep, as usual.

_Perhaps I could go to the next tavern, or a local restaurant… wander the streets and find a lovely woman to walk with me… he would never know…_ the blond mused. But he had made a promise to Nami-_san_ to stay with the bastard, and he could not break a promise to a lady.

"_Kuso_," he muttered under his breath, taking a drag and staring at his wine glass. The barkeep was laughing a full belly laugh so loudly at a joke another customer had told that the pirate chef did not hear the door opening and shutting. It wasn't until the barman's guffaws suddenly fell silent did he notice that the tavern's patrons were now different than they had been a moment ago. He looked about the now-quiet room to find that he was completely surrounded by…

… women…

"_Mello-_"

He was cut off by a booted heel slamming into his jaw, flooring him. He quickly leapt up again to challenge the man who dared to come between him and all these beautiful maidens, only to find that the man he was to fight was… a stunning woman the likes of which he had never before seen! He quickly switched to praising her unparalleled loveliness, from her black-as-night hair to her flawless white skin to her cherry-lips…

She ignored him until the barman had given her a drink. She flung back her long cape and threw back the shot of liquor as though it were water. Sanji continued to murmur accolades, and after approximately ten seconds of enduring this, the woman had had enough, and kicked his face again.

He fell on the floor, proclaiming that her kicks spoke of the truest love. Suddenly –

"Damn it! What the hell! Bitch, let me –"

Sanji angrily sprang at the _marimo_, but stopped in surprise, his cigarette falling from his open mouth. "What's going on here?"

Before him stood six women, five holding down and tying up a recently awoken Zoro, who was bewilderedly struggling against their hold on him. The sixth stood off the side, Zoro's three swords carefully tucked under her arm. Sanji frowned. Something didn't smell right. "Oi, _marimo_. How'd you let these lovely ladies capture you?" He paused. "Ah, yes. That's right, you were aslee-"

"_Shut up, damn cook, and get my swords back._"

Zoro's eyes were locked on the woman with his _katana_. They were murderous. No, they were beyond murderous. Sanji had seen this desperation and determination on his crewmate's face once before, but he turned his mind away from it. Violence, in this case, would never be the answer. The fairest sex must always be handled with care and delicacy. He turned back to the woman at the bar, who was casually throwing back another shot.

His match sprang to life with the scratch-_whoosh_ of a new flame. He cupped it to the cigarette clamped in his mouth. With this completed, he approached the woman at the bar.

"I cannot imagine what I could have done so right as to merit such angels condescending to bless me with their presence. To what do my vulgar companion and I owe your visit?"

"Bounty," was the woman's simple answer.

"Ah." He thought for a moment. "Go ahead and take him away, then," he returned, shrugging his shoulders. "I won't stop you."

"Bastard."

"_Marimo._"

"Oh, we know you won't stop us," said the woman with a laugh. "You _can't_ stop us." She finally looked at him, and despite his growing dread, a part of his heart melted. "You are Black Leg Sanji, and he is ex-Pirate-Hunter Roronoa Zoro. He was to be the difficult one, and he has lived up to that expectation magnificently. You have also lived up to our expectations."

"And they were?"

"You refuse to touch any woman in a menacing fashion. And thus, my great commander directed my division – consisting solely of women – to aim for you two, and keep you here." As she spoke, she drew a mini DenDen Mushi from a pocket in her short skirt and set it on the bar. Sanji noticed the barman had fled. His feeling of wrongness compounded. He had to ask exactly the right questions and figure out what was going to happen.

"Keep us here? What good will that do, if you're after our bounties?"

"We're not after _your_ bounties, Black Leg." A few of the women tittered.

"Then who's – ?"

"Your captain. Monkey D. Luffy. We have been ordered to make sure you don't go running to help him. He's weakest when he's alone."

"Tch," Sanji remarked and took a drag. Some local bounty hunters were certainly nothing for Luffy to worry about. Of course, they had captured Zoro and him rather effectively… But Luffy had defeated two Shichibukai. And if _anything_ happened to Sanji or Zoro, the blond chef didn't doubt that Luffy would _eat_ these women's commander. He almost smiled, and relaxed.

"_Nani!_ What are you doing?!" cried Zoro as Sanji walked behind the bar.

"These lovely ladies are not going to harm us, bastard. I thought I should be the gentleman and offer them some refreshment until Luffy kicks their commander's ass all the way back to East Blue. Would you like that, my angels?" More of the women laughed at him, but he would not be deterred. He started pulling bottles and glasses off shelves, then he noticed that the leader was speaking on the DenDen Mushi.

"… Hai, we were successful, sir. Yes. Yes. Of course we shall. Best of luck to you, sir. Second-in-Command Miyoko out." She set the mouthpiece back on the receiver. "It will not be long now, my friends," she called out, addressing her underlings. "Soon, our commander will defeat _Mugiwara no _Luffy, and we will become the most powerful crew on the Grand Line!"

Cheers erupted throughout the bar. Sanji glanced at Zoro, who was no longer struggling against his bonds. Their eyes met for a long moment, and then both looked away.

"So, how about those drinks, Black Leg?" asked Miyoko, laughing. "I want to enjoy this as much as possible."

"Hai, right away!"

But as Sanji poured the drinks, he found his gaze returning to the green-haired man's slumped form. He had read an urgency in the bastard's eyes that mirrored his own. The same thought had crossed their minds, and it troubled Sanji.

Each of the Strawhat crew, at some point, had doubted themselves and their dreams.

_(What if he just wasn't cut out for the sea, or what if there came a crucial time when he had to be brave, and he just couldn't?) _

_(Or what about drawing a map of the entire world – if no one had done it before, how was she to know when she was done?) _

_(Or what if All Blue was really nothing more than an old wives' tale, spun of fantasy and wishful thinking, and that he was on a wild goose chase?) _

_(What if a panacea doesn't exist, or what if one of his _nakama_ became sick with something he couldn't treat, and they died?) _

_(What if too much of the Rio Poneglyph had been destroyed by the World Government, and she too would never find what she was looking for?) _

_(What if, on their journey to Raftel, something terrible happened and he couldn't fix the ship, and everyone drowned?) _

_(What if he never made it back to see Laboon, or what if his friend gave up or died before he could return?)_

Even Zoro had doubted himself since joining the crew, though only twice: when Mihawk defeated him, and much later, not even a month ago, at Thriller Bark. He had touched Luffy's pain; he had received a tiny portion of it and screamed. If Luffy could take that much… if Luffy was willing to go through that much hell for them, he could end up killing himself without noticing. What if that happened? Where would the crew be… where would Zoro be, if Luffy were lost?

Luffy was fine, the two men were easily convincing themselves of that fact. But looking at one another, another tiny doubt surfaced. Why were these bounty hunters so confident? Didn't they know who they were dealing with? Something was going on. They just had to find out what.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I love this chapter.

* * *

Luffy had been fighting for only three minutes, and already he was exhausted. He was losing blood from numerous punctures and scratches all over his body, and the nearness of the seastone was swiftly weakening his life force. But all he had to do was think of his _nakama_ – of Chopper and Brook, who were still bound but had him between them and their captors. The thought of anyone taking them away from him surged new strength through his body. He _had _to be able to protect them; otherwise, he wasn't fit to be their captain. A quick look told him that both were unconscious, cocooned as they were in the seastone nets. He gritted his teeth, bent his knees, and placed his fist on the ground.

"_Gear… Second_," he intoned. Steam rose swirlingly off his pink skin. He felt stronger, but he wished he had some meat.

His eyes met those of the bounty hunters' commander, who scoffed. "Do you really think this trick can keep you from your defeat, Monkey D. Luffy? You cannot touch us!" He laughed loudly. "You haven't touched us yet!"

"That laugh is really annoying," said Luffy simply, breathing hard. Being in Gear Second with the seastone so close was uncomfortable, like a rock was stuck in his sandal. He shook off the feeling and focused on saving his friends. "What you say doesn't matter. I will surpass you."

And he readied himself for the next assault.

* * *

Behind Luffy, Chopper struggled to open his eyes and think. His thoughts were scattered easily by the seastone, and it was so very tempting to slide back into the blackness. But he couldn't. Luffy would need his help.

There, his eyes were open. What were these shapes he was seeing? Oh, that's Brook. Those black squares behind him are the windows to the empty stores. Where was Luffy?

The little reindeer squirmed and craned his neck to look around. There! Up the street Luffy stood, facing the strange men. What were they carrying – spears? How lame. A man in the center – the leader, Chopper assumed – was laughing, and the sound made Chopper's blood boil. They can't _do_ that. Not to _his_ _nakama_. And certainly not to Luffy.

"Bastards!" he squeaked, trying to wriggle out of the net. He tried shifting into his Heavy Point, because the larger body might break his bonds with sheer pressure, but it was no use: he couldn't shapeshift while the seastone was so close. He stopped moving and, despairing, felt tears fill his eyes. He wanted to help!

Voices reached him from up the street. Luffy was shifting into Gear Second. "You haven't touched us yet!" shouted the laughing man.

Chopper strained to hear Luffy's response. The rubber man's tone had transformed from its normal gaiety into something dark and terrible; cold shivers moved down the reindeer's back at the sound of words, even as their content warmed his heart. "That laugh is really annoying. What you say doesn't matter. I will surpass you." _Yes, Luffy! Beat them!_

The reindeer watched the battle with wide eyes, worried for his friend. He saw for the first time the wounds his captain had suffered, making his skin slick and red with his blood. Surprisingly, Luffy had no gaping wounds, just little nicks on his arms and legs. Chopper wondered why he was covered in so much blood… And then, as the battle raged, he realized that something was very, very wrong.

_The spears… are made of _kairouseki_…_ … …

Chopper gasped. As ship's doctor, he made sure he knew exactly what kinds of effects _kairouseki_ had on his Devil Fruit user charges: Robin, Luffy, Brook, and himself. Robin became unnaturally tired, lost her ability to reason and think logically, and could not use her powers; but the weakest part of her was usually her limbs, the parts of her body she could most easily bloom elsewhere. He himself, obviously, could not shapeshift, and his human thoughts were harder to maintain – he found himself wishing for a patch of green grass to munch on. When he examined Brook, he found that the skeleton usually became just that – an inanimate skeleton – and they had speculated that, since the fruit the fencing musician ate had given him life after death, too long in the proximity of seastone would lead to his permanent death.

Luffy became very tired and craved meat when under the effects of the stone. He also lost much of his elasticity as well as his quick healing. Chopper guessed correctly in that the spears, which had barely scratched his captain, were the main cause of the unnaturally profuse bleeding from the cuts. As he continued to watch, he saw that none of Luffy's flying fists or kicks actually hit their targets. That was why the men were laughing at him.

Anger rose in Chopper's chest. He watched Luffy use his Jet moves with no effect other than a tap on the men's chests; while his arms were outstretched, the men were using the opportunity to slash him with the spear tips.

"Ow!" cried Luffy after a particularly deep cut on his forearm. He let his hand snap back to his side and looked at the bleeding. "You'll pay for that," he told the man who had struck him, who snickered back.

"_LUFFYYYYY!_" shouted Chopper in the battle's lull.

The black-haired man whipped his head to see him, a relieved expression on his face. "Chopper! You're okay?"

"A-Aye!" he yelled back. "You have to be careful, though! Those spears are made of _kairous_—"

"I know, Chopper," Luffy interrupted seriously, turning back to his foes. The little reindeer could well imagine the terrifying glare his captain was sending his enemies, but he was surprised when some of the men – so recently unafraid and laughing – actually backed away.

The leader of the group was surprised too. "Hold your positions, idiots! Or I'll cut you down myself!" he ordered, menacing the men nearby with his own spears.

"You shouldn't treat your _nakama_ like that," said Luffy solemnly. "You take care of them, and they take care of you. You have to work together. That's how you all survive. _That's what being _nakama _means!_"

_Yes!_ thought Chopper. "Luffy! Beat them!" he cheered.

Luffy bit his thumb. "Aye, Chopper," he said around it. "_Gear… Third!_"

And Luffy threw himself back into the fight.

* * *

_Keep going… Keep going… keep … going…_ thought Luffy as he attacked and counterattacked. The men were holding back, remaining in a tight group so his arm couldn't sneak around them to knock them off their feet or punch the back of their heads. It was as though he were just flapping his hands around a wall that could repeatedly stab him. It was surprising and frustrating and angered him to no end. There had to be something else he could do to get around their guard… If he could just take out one guy, he'd have made a hole in the wall and could gain an advantage…

A spear tip cut across his fingers, and he yelped and drew back his hand, inspecting it. "Damn it!" he yelled. If only Zoro or someone would come, they could fight the stupid Mystery Stone and get this over with…

He prepared himself for another attack. "_Bone… Fuusen!_" he called out to the shadowy street, his right arm expanding to outrageous proportions. He swung the fist back, cried, "_Gomu Gomu no… Gigantic Pistol—_"

And the world seemed to stop.

No, he thought, no, no, no, no, _no_, that's not right, that can't have happened, he must protect. He must keep going. He must, he must, he must; Chopper and Brook need him, they need him to win –

_Plink, plink, plink_. Tiny circles of red liquid on the ground, at his feet, falling off of him. _Plink, plink, plink._

He took a shattered breath, and groaned a little. It _hurt_. Sure, things like this had hurt before, what Crocodile did had hurt, what Lucci did had hurt, a million times more than this… This was nothing. Keep going. Keep going. He must.

_Plink_.

Dimly was he aware of his surroundings. The annoying man was still laughing, but – there. Was someone screaming? Was _he_ screaming? No, no. Not him. He was just surprised, is all.

He'd keep going. That blood there – it was nothing. He had to be strong enough to protect them, his _nakama_. Gear Third had been lost, in his surprise, but he wasn't small, he wasn't unconscious. This was nothing. He'd been through worse before.

And he remembered, not a moment ago: "Luffy! Beat them!"

And he had said, "Aye." Meaning yes. Meaning I will, or I will die trying.

Well, he wasn't dead yet.

"_Gomu Gomu no… Gatling!_"


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Well, it's really hard to follow a chapter like the last one. But I tried. It's really long. Some great angsty stuff between Sanji and Zoro. And Nami kicks some ass. :)

* * *

Zoro let his worry slip away. He _knew_ Luffy would be okay. Bounty hunters – they had destroyed that family in the ice sea, so these guys were nothing. It was just a little setback, being tied up like this. At some point, Usopp or Franky or Nami or Robin or Chopper or Brook or Luffy would barge into the tavern, beat up the stupid women, and they would leave. Nami would beat up Sanji, and probably Zoro too, for leaving the ship and getting themselves caught.

Zoro exhaled. He'd deserve the beating, but that didn't mean he'd like it. Damn bitch.

He felt himself sliding back into his nap. Sanji was attempting to woo all twenty-one women at once, and Zoro found sleep preferable to the nauseating romantic language he was being forced to listen to while awake. He closed his eyes and let the ropes hold him up as he dozed.

A while later, a lull in noise was sufficiently strange enough to wake him up again. He swung his head up to glare blearily at the women around him, who were standing stiffly at attention as his guards. The one across the table still had his swords. The fiery hatred for the woman that had consumed him earlier surged through his veins again, but as he remembered the complete situation, the loathing dissipated. He had no doubt he'd get them back soon. But why had Sanji stopped cooing? Where was the annoying constant titter of female laughter? He looked first to the door – had their crewmates finally arrived?

It didn't look like it. He and Sanji were the only _Mugiwara_ Pirates in the tavern. He was still tied up and under a guard, and Sanji was…

At the bar, of course. But Zoro knew immediately that something had gone wrong.

Zoro's gaze focused in on the chef's face. The blond man had gone white, his single visible eye wide. His cigarette was nowhere to be seen, having fallen out of his half-open mouth. And… his hands were shaking.

"Oi! Ero-cook," called Zoro, and the chef faced the swordsman with a great deal of unease. Their eyes met. "What the hell's going on?" Zoro asked, tamping down the irrational panic.

It was then that he noticed the boss woman – Miyoko or something – was on the DenDen Mushi again. And he noticed the women were smiling, but not in jest. In triumph.

_No, no, there's no way_ –

Miyoko threw her head back and laughed, and Sanji choked a gasp, having been able to hear what the commander on the other end had said. _What the fuck_, Zoro thought, extremely frustrated. _Why will no one tell me … what if…_

"_What the hell happened?!_" he yelled, surprising his guards. Sanji didn't look at him again, but stepped back from the bar, stumbling against the counter. Zoro kept his eyes locked on the man; his back was stiff, his gaze unseeing, his hands still quivering. He grabbed the apron and clenched it between his fingers to still them. "Sanji?" asked Zoro, quieter.

"You want to know what happened?" asked the devil-woman Miyoko. She left the bar and walked towards where Zoro was tied up, helpless. A feral grin spread across her face. Zoro glared at her and shifted in his bonds. He planted his feet and felt the muscles in his shoulders tighten in response to his anxiety.

"I don't think you do."

"Tell me, damn it." His whisper was venomous, poison. He hated her. He hated every woman in this goddamn tavern –

"Your captain is going to die. Very soon. In fact…" she paused, searching his face for – what? fear? despair? – something, and continued, "He is probably already dead." The grin made him sick. "Too bad you weren't there to help him, eh?"

Something inside of Zoro went very still for a long moment. Finally, he uttered around a sudden lump-in-the-throat and a burning in his chest:

"Liar."

"She's not," said a harsh, broken voice by the bar, and Zoro looked at Sanji in shock. Of all the times for him to stick up for a woman – "I … I heard it. They – damn. They had … _kairouseki_ spears." He let this fact sink into Zoro's head, closed his eyes. "They… they… …" Sanji breathed. "Got him," he finished, very quietly.

_No._

"… One of the shitty bastards threw one, and he'd already been hurt…"

_No._

"… and… and Chopper screamed…"

_No._

"_Gomu Gomu no… Gatling!_" came a tinny voice from the bar.

Sanji and Zoro's heads snapped up to stare at the DenDen Mushi in disbelief. All the women were looking too. Incredulity was written on every one of the twenty-three faces in the room. Another voice started shouting from the snail – "Sub-commander Miyoko! He's not going down! He's – _Ahhh!_"

Something cracked on the other end, and the line went dead.

All the women started talking at once. Zoro did not take the time to appreciate the fear and surprise in the voices. He was trying to get the image of a dying, bleeding, _alone_ Luffy out of his head, and he was trying to figure out where Sanji had gone. He began to strain against his bonds with renewed vigor. Luffy needed them. There wasn't much time.

Chaos flew around him as the women drew their swords and guns, terrified. What kind of Devil Fruit user could still fight with a _kairouseki _spear running through him? It was impossible! Something had to have gone terribly wrong! Maybe it wasn't an actual _kairouseki_ spear… maybe, maybe…

Zoro pulled and pulled at the ropes around his arms and chest, the corded muscles in his neck standing out with the strain. To no avail; but he did not stop trying. The woman who had held his _katana_ captive was on her feet, staring at Miyoko, ignoring his weaponry. If he were just a bit stronger, he could break this… Where _was_ the love-cook?

Miyoko stood with her back to him, facing her comrades-in-arms and trying to restore order to her scared troops. She barked orders for silence, and slowly, the girls calmed down.

"Now," said the sub-commander. "We will have to send some back-up to the captain's division –"

A dark blur to his right –

– _whoosh_ – Thud.

Miyoko grunted and was sent sailing into the wall to his left.

_What_?

Black Leg Sanji, both his eyes hidden by his hair, straightened his tie, looking at the fallen sub-commander. The women didn't know how to react. They stared at him the same way Zoro was staring at him – in astonishment.

The chef lit a cigarette, took a drag, and finally turned away from the injured woman to look at Zoro. He deftly used his right foot to flip _Wadou Ichimonji_, which had been dropped with the other _katana_ onto the floor, at the bound swordsman, who smiled and caught the hilt in his teeth. A second later, he stood beside the blond with his _katana_ returned to his side.

Sanji's eyes were fixed on Miyoko. He looked… pained.

Zoro's look moved swiftly between him and the woman. None of the subordinate bounty hunters had moved a muscle. "Thanks," Zoro said.

At the sound of the older man's voice, Sanji shook himself slightly. "We need to go. He needs us. That's why… I…"

Zoro nodded, his dark eyes reassuring. That was all Sanji needed. "Let's go."

The other women let them walk out of the tavern unhindered, still in shock. When they entered the street, they broke into a run.

_I hope we're not too late_.

* * *

Nami and Robin had cleared the field of _kairouseki_ and were running frantically up and down all the streets in the first level of the town. The festival had moved into the upper levels of the city, so the first level's streets were nearly completely deserted. They reached the dock without meeting a single soul. Sunny-Go was floating calmly on the night sea, safely tied to the wooden planks. Nami glanced inquisitively at Robin, who nodded, assuring her that no one had boarded the ship.

The two turned back to the city and started running again. Robin noted that Nami's breaths had grown ragged, and that the delicate mapmaker's hands were gripping the Climatact so strongly that her knuckles were white. Her own breathing had become harsh – fear for her friends was choking her.

She took a deep breath. "Nami," she called, slowing her pace to a walk. She could feel her dark hair stick to the back of her neck. She watched as Nami stopped and turned around, running back to where Robin was.

"What is it, Robin?" Nami asked with concern, if a bit impatiently. The orange-haired girl bit her lip, and perspiration crept toward her chin from her hairline. The night was particularly warm. Yuya is a spring island, Robin remembered.

"We need to think."

Nami ground her teeth together. "Can't we think while we run?"

Robin smiled gently at her. "We will find them in time, Nami," she admonished. "But not if we keep running randomly down side streets. Take a deep breath."

Nami complied, her breath catching at the end. Then it caught again, and again. She was fighting tears. "Those… those _idiots_," she raged quietly, as a tear escaped her eyes, and she wiped it quickly away. Compassion and empathy – emotions she had only recently become acquainted with – rose in Robin's heart, and she put a comforting hand on Nami's shoulder.

"We _will_ find them," she repeated steadily, and Nami was able to take a deep breath without hiccupping.

"Okay. We know – are pretty sure – that they are still on the first level," Nami stated, composed.

"Yes. And we know that, for as long as they possibly can, they will fight."

The stubborn chin went down and up once. "And Zoro and Sanji have probably found them and are helping. Hopefully Usopp and Franky too."

"We are facing a hundred men fighting our boys." Robin raised an elegant eyebrow as she said this, and Nami's mouth quirked in response. "And we know how our boys fight."

Nami breathed easier, the weak smile spreading. "Messily. And loud."

"Perhaps we can listen for them," Robin agreed.

The two friends, who had been walking for the duration of this conversation, were now standing in the light of a tavern. Surprised that any of the townspeople were still on this level, they looked through the windows to see what was going on.

A bunch of women were standing listlessly around the room. There were no men. A few were crowded near a far wall. "Hold on a moment, Robin," Nami said over her shoulder, pulling on the door and entering the tavern.

The women menaced her with the weapons they were holding as she walked in. The navigator shifted into a defensive stance, Climatact in both hands diagonally in front of her, and asked, "What's going on here?"

"Nothing," said a voice from the crowd. Some of the women exclaimed as one drew forth from their midst. She was beautiful, Nami had to admit, with long, black locks and a cherry-red mouth. She was gingerly touching her head and wiping away blood from a cut on her lip. She looked Nami over quickly, and then proceeded to ignore her. "Ladies," she addressed the women, "why haven't you pursued our escapees?! If the commander finds out –"

"The commander has been incapacitated, Miyoko-_sama_," piped one of the women by the bar. She gestured to a mini DenDen Mushi on the bar, from which yells and panicked shouts could be heard. "It happened only a second ago. Monkey D. Luffy has won."

A satisfied and relieved smile worked its way onto Nami's face, and she quickly masked it as she noticed the angry look on the beautiful woman's visage.

"No!" she shouted. She breathed deeply through her nose for a moment. "Alright. _Mugiwara_ is still injured – there is a chance we can make up the losses. Even if the commander is indisposed, _we_ can go pick up whatever's left of that _pirate_ –"

"What do you mean?" Nami asked before thinking. She knew now that she was among the enemy. The beautiful woman stared at her, as though surprised she could talk.

She sniffed. "It's none of your business, citizen. But you probably should" – at this, she half-drew a sabre at her side – "leave now."

Nami peered at her, and suddenly grasped that this woman did not recognize her as a part of the Strawhat crew. A clever idea struck her, and she feigned fear. "Do you have business elsewhere, m-miss?" she asked timidly, surreptitiously collapsing her Climatact. "I wouldn't want to get in your w-w-way…"

The woman smiled at the show of submission. "Me and my gals will be up along Jiaro Street in just a bit. Be sure you keep yourself well away from there tonight."

"Y-yes, ma'am." Nami made sure her exit was swift and terrified. When she got back outside, she caught Robin's eye and grinned. "They're on Jiaro Street."

Robin looked at her incredulously, then grinned too. "Ah."

But Nami's face quickly fell. "Luffy's hurt, but he beat the asshole commander, so Chopper should be helping him." Robin nodded in understanding, and they were off again, running through the night.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: So, an interesting, fun chapter ahead, dear reader. You'll notice I've neglected the long line for separating sections. It's intentional. Long line means (to me) to switch scenes. This is all one scene with just a bunch of different people involved, and I wanted all of their views... or most of them, at least... without changing scenes. Thus, twelve asterisks.

Also, I said at the beginning that I do not pair anybody in this fic. It still holds true, whatever you read in this chapter. It's just a little Nami-centric, cuz I like her tough-girl temper/soft side dual personality.

um, but if you must know, i am pro san/na. NOT IN THIS! IT'S PLATONIC, DAMMIT!!! :P

* * *

Jiaro Street was quiet. The shops were closed, their doors barred and windows locked and dark. Tall poles for street lights – colorful lanterns for the festival – were spaced along either side of the street, but only a few lanterns still gave light to the cobbled road below.

One, a bright garden-green, shone lightly down, creating an ellipse of greenish glow on the street. A small shape sat on the edge of this patch of light, and it was upon this figure, not the various prone bodies scattered about her, that Nami focused when she and Robin burst out of an alleyway and into the street.

It was unmoving, kneeling on the smooth, brown stones. It didn't speak. But these were not the strangest details; the strangest of all was the long, continuous line protruding from the figure's front and back. The head was bowed. As Nami and Robin approached it, both noticed the yellow straw hat hanging limply from the boy's neck –

They both stopped breathing, their eyes wide, for a long, flat second that felt infinite, then both screamed his name. He didn't lift his head to look at them, and whatever little hope they had in their hearts gasped and sputtered. The girls were beside him without knowing how they had crossed the distance. They tried to wake him – his eyes were open and blank, unresponsive, dead. Nami's wet eyes took in the blood running in rivulets down his torso, arms, legs, face and saw the way his hands still clenched into fists despite the end of the fight. She barely noticed Robin hiss in pain and surprised after touching the spear running through his body, or acknowledged that the other woman had stood stiffly and backed away from it. She saw and heard nothing but her captain and his fragile breathing until, faintly, a crying voice reached her ears. It whispered _his_ name.

"Chopper!" cried Robin, running toward a quivering, sobbing mass down the street. Nami, tearing her eyes away from the bloody mess, watched her, relief evident on her face. Chopper will help. He can save him.

"Nami, we need you," called Robin, in a helpless voice. "He's in a _kairouseki_ net. I can't…" Nami shook herself from her stupor – the shock of finding the strongest of them all so weak – and swiftly followed Robin to where the tiny reindeer lay, bound by a black net woven with innocent-looking grey stones. Her nimble mapmaker's fingers worked quickly, knowing that time was of the essence. In a minute, Chopper was free.

He shifted into Brain Point and hugged Robin's leg, tears streaming from his watery eyes. "_Arigatou_! Nami, Robin…"

"Hurry, Chopper," Nami said quietly. He nodded, wiping his face and morphing into his Heavy Point. He ran back to where Luffy knelt, motionless and unaware of the goings-on around him.

"Brook's over there!" Chopper yelled to Nami, pointing. "He was caught in a net too, and you need to free him in case he … he…"

Nami stumbled over to Brook's form and went to work again. She didn't realize she was crying. She pulled the skeleton completely free of the net and sat on her heels, waiting for him to revive.

"Nami!!!" shouted Chopper, panicked. "Please… it's _kairouseki_, and I can't…"

Under any other circumstances, Nami would have been irritated. But not now.

She approached Luffy again, feeling numb. Chopper was in full doctor-mode, now, and was quite calm, though fear of failure and its consequences made his voice shake. He directed her where to stand and how to pull it out. The pointed tip had gone cleanly through his body, but the problem was that _kairouseki_ formed the core of the shaft as well as the tip, and the shaft must have remained in his body for at least ten minutes of hard fighting.

"You have to remove it quickly, Nami, so I can stop the blood. Just pull it through. Okay?" Chopper was asking her. Before she could nod her response, the silence that had reigned over the street was broken by a strangled exclamation. She squinted at the men down the road, who had started sprinting towards her. The Perfect Climatact was assembled in her hands in a flash, but she suddenly realized it wouldn't be necessary.

Zoro dropped to his knees in front of Luffy, staring. His hands hovered between them, wanting to help but not knowing how. Sanji, cigarette-less, watched his captain with a horror-struck expression. Despite having run through the warm night air to get here, his skin was pale. He stopped beside Nami, drawing her away from the wounded – dying – man, and tried to turn her face away. She dully let him do so, let herself be led away from the gore. Robin, who had been standing some distance away, approached the two of them with Brook following close behind. The older woman took Nami into her arms and they hugged for a long time. Sanji stood protectively by the women, but out of habit, because his eyes were fixed on Luffy, the first mate, and the doctor. He was still pale. His hands shook. He seemed to mutter something over and over, but Nami couldn't hear what it was – his lips barely moved.

The Strawhats had grown close enough and familiar enough with Brook that, though he had no facial muscles, Nami felt certain that she saw a distinct look of remorse appear on the skull's features as he gazed at Luffy with his eye sockets. She herself could not bear to look back. The notion of what she had nearly had to do was slowly sinking into her mind – pull a spear through Luffy's back, and hope the resulting blood loss didn't kill him… She shuddered.

************

Chopper noticed Zoro looking at him, and met his eyes. Such a painful look he had never seen on Zoro's face – Zoro, always so strong and stoic, willful and powerful – that the tears threatened again. They were quickly forced back. Now was not the time to be weak.

"What can I do…?" Zoro asked softly. His eyes were hard, guarded, hurt. _I'm too late_, Chopper could see him think. _I wasn't strong enough_.

Chopper made a decision in that moment. Zoro needed _him_ to be the strong one now. He needed to make this better, and Chopper was his only hope. So he barked, "Get behind him, asshole. We've got to get it out of him, don't you see? But you've gotta do it fast. Once you're done, get out of my way."

Zoro nodded and followed the young doctor's instructions obediently, with hope returning to his eyes.

************

When Sanji saw Zoro place his hands on the spear and shift his stance to pull, his neck instinctively twisted to make him look away from the terrible sight. But a second had not passed before he made himself look again.

"… my fault my fault my fault my fault…" he whispered constantly under his breath. He had to look. He had to watch. This was his punishment for being weak. Seeing all the pain he had caused by deliberating, by flirting, by fraternizing with the enemy. He hoped the pain he was feeling, as he watched his captain suffer for his incompetence, could take away his guilt.

He didn't think it would.

************

"He'll be okay, right?" Nami's question was muffled by Robin's shoulder.

The archeologist, who had watched Zoro and Chopper's operation unperturbed, smiled. "I'm sure Chopper knows what he's doing, Nami," she said in a motherly fashion.

"I know he does," said Nami. "I just…" She sighed.

Robin was watching Sanji now, concern for him growing steadily as he rigidly stared at the scene in the green light. He hadn't moved in over a minute, and she knew he must be craving. Perhaps she should say something.

Nami extricated herself from Robin's hug and looked up and down the street as though searching for something. "Where are Franky and Usopp?" she asked.

"Still captured, most likely. We can get them when we –"

An abrupt shout of surprise from the alleyway startled everyone except Chopper, who was busily binding a collapsed Luffy's wounds and who could not afford a distraction. He trusted his _nakama_ to make sure he could keep working without interruption. Zoro was standing beside the tiny reindeer and his fallen captain, but he looked up when he heard Miyoko.

The beautiful bounty hunter, followed by all of her subordinates, took in the damage to her commander's forces. The men lay about, either unconscious or dead. There were only forty bodies or so – the rest must have fled. Cowards. And there, the Strawhat crew stood, totally free. Her blood boiled.

Her eyes caught orange hair. "YOU!" she screeched, pointing at Nami. The navigator's brow furrowed as she frowned.

"What?"

"One of _THEM_!" she spat.

Nami's numbness was gone, replaced by a dire hatred for this evil, cruel woman. She maintained her calm, however, just as she had with the bounty hunter men; her anger simmered beneath a tight lid. She carefully brought the Climatact before her and started to walk – saunter, really – toward the women's division. A black shape cut her off, however, holding his hand out to stop her.

"I'll take care of this, Nami-_san_," Sanji said clearly, facing Miyoko. Smoke wafted above his blond hair, blue against the black sky.

"Sanji-_kun_…?" she asked him, surprised. "Maybe I should…"

"NO." The man took a deep breath, then put the cigarette back in his mouth. "_I_ can do this."

"Nami," called a gruff voice, "he can."

Nami glanced back at Zoro, who had a hand on _Wadou_ and a fierce expression on his face. He glowered at the woman leading the bounty hunters, but he didn't join her and Sanji to fight. She gritted her teeth. "I'm not letting you have all the fun," she told Sanji pertly, tightening her hold on the Climatact. She heard the sound of a sword being smoothly slipped from its sheath, and looked to her left to find Brook.

"May I join you, Nami?" he inquired politely. Behind him stood Robin, wrists crossed in front of her, a slight smile on her face.

One side of Nami's mouth went up. "You certainly may," she quietly replied.

Sanji attacked suddenly, closely followed by Brook, sword weaving and waving. Nami stayed back and prepared a storm, heavy with electricity. Robin's arms sprouted everywhere, tripping and slapping and breaking.

Needless to say, it didn't take very long for Miyoko's forces to tumble among their male comrades.

"That'll be the last of them, aside from the ones who got Usopp and Franky."

Nami nodded at Sanji. These were the first _normal_ words she'd heard from his mouth since he arrived here. And he had just willingly attacked a bunch of women. Anxious now, Nami approached him, placing a tentative hand on his arm. He flinched at her touch, and then relaxed, keeping his eyes on the ground. "Sanji-_kun_," she began, not knowing how to continue.

He met her eyes and seemed to understand her unspoken questions. He smiled sincerely and said, "My apologies, Nami-_san_. I have not been myself."

"What happened?"

His smile became tight, almost forced, but it remained, no doubt for her benefit. "That division," he said, gesturing to the fallen women, "was the one sent to detain Zoro and me. Well, really, they didn't have to bother with me." His voice was icy, full of self-loathing. He took a drag, and met her eyes again. He seemed to be relieved to tell her this. The smile was comfortable, but hesitant. "I…" he trailed off.

Nami slid her hand down to hold his, suddenly understanding. He was _blaming_ himself, _baka_. "It's not your fault, Sanji."

His hand jerked, but she held it tight. The smile was gone, and he was breathing harder. "Yes, it was," he said, biting the end of each word.

"No," she commanded. "We weren't prepared for something like this. I… I left Brook, Chopper, and Luffy alone to fend for themselves… they're all fruit-users… If it's anyone's fault, it's mine."

"It's my fault," said Zoro quietly, from beside Luffy. "I'm first mate. I should be there to protect him… I should have been stronger…"

Nami rolled her eyes. _Men_. "In that case it's my fault again, for not letting you follow him, _baka_."

Zoro just shook his head. Nami felt her temper returning, but then she noticed he held Luffy's blood-spattered hat in his hands. Her heart jumped in her throat. "Did he wake up?" she asked breathlessly, running over to him.

The swordsman nodded imperceptibly. "For only a minute."

"We've got to get him to the ship," Chopper ordered. "Zoro?" The man didn't hesitate, carefully scooping Luffy up, into his arms. "Don't ruin his bandages, _baka_," Chopper scolded.

"I won't," he grunted, and began walking.

Nami grinned, but hid it quickly. "Oi, Zoro?"

His step didn't falter as he swung around, already knowing why she'd stopped him. "Lead on, witch."

Sanji's lips curled into a half-smile-half-grimace. "What did you say to her, bastard?" he muttered at the green-haired man.

Zoro smiled.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Ta-Da! The titular chapter is uploaded. (. have fun finding it. It's riiiiggghhhhht there.)

In which questions are asked and few are answered... yet. Oh, and I take liberties with the facts of the One Piece world. Do the bounties actually say who's a Devil Fruit user? Dunno, but probably not. And seastone is just said to be rare - but more expensive than Adam wood? Makes sense, but I have no clue.

If it matters enough to you that you get angry about it, come on, get a life! I mean, OP is the most amazing stuff ever, I know. But it's the characters, not the little details, that make it great. So, no matter how angry you become at my incongruous conduct, please hold your tongue, dear reader.

* * *

The sounds and lights of the festival had died away by the time their tiny procession reached Sunny-Go. The villagers must have gone to their homes in the countryside outside of the town proper, for no voices of panic belied a discovery of the bodies on Jiaro Street. The dock was bathed in moonlight, and the water glimmered.

With relief, Nami recognized Usopp and Franky by the ship. "Guys! Are you okay?"

"Aye, but we were attacked by a hundred – no, a thousand bounty hunters! If I hadn't been so courageous and quick-thinking, we surely would have per – ished –" Usopp's boasts were cut off as he caught sight of Zoro. "L-L-Luffy?" he spluttered. "What – ?"

"Oi! _Senchou_!" Franky exclaimed.

Zoro walked past them without stopping or looking at them. He strode up the gangplank quickly followed by Chopper, and the three disappeared into the infirmary without a word. The door shut and a yellow light suddenly shone from the window.

"We've had a long night," Sanji said simply to Usopp. He ran a hand through his hair. Dark circles could be seen under his eyes, and Nami knew they had nothing to do with his lack of sleep. "Anybody hungry?"

No one spoke, and Sanji, catching Robin, Brook and Nami's concerned gazes, ground his teeth. "I'm _fine_, alright?" He glared accusingly at Usopp. "You've _got_ to be hungry."

The lanky sniper was looking to the door through which his best friend had disappeared. "Is he gonna be okay, Nami?" he asked without looking away.

"Aye, Chopper's the best doctor," she reassured him brightly. "Luffy'll be eating our food again in no time."

"Did those stupid Argos people do it?"

"Yeah."

Usopp looked confused. "How the hell did they do that?" he asked indignantly. "Luffy's so strong, much stronger than those bastards. I mean, we beat off, what, five hundred –"

"Thirty," Franky corrected.

"They had _kairouseki_. A lot of it," Robin told them calmly.

Usopp's eyes widened. "_N-nani_?"

"A midnight snack would be lovely, Sanji-_kun_," Nami said to the disheartened chef. She flashed him a brilliant smile.

"Hai, Nami-_san_."

"We'll explain everything, okay?" she told Franky and Usopp. The dazed crew followed their chef onto the ship.

* * *

Usopp sipped his tea carefully, giving himself time to think of his next question. It was all so shocking. How could an average bounty-hunting crew have figured them out so well? It was just bad luck, he assumed. That's the only way. It wouldn't be _too_ difficult for them to find out that Sanji wouldn't hurt a woman, after the chef's failed attempt to fight Kalifa of Cipher Pol 9… though that was supposed to be hushed up by the World Government… But the wanted posters said who was a Devil Fruit User, so figuring that out wouldn't have been difficult. They just had had to get a lot of _kairouseki_ to bring all of them down. Where would they get it? It's a black market item – the WG doesn't like civilians having that much power. _And_ the Argos hunters had been lucky that none of the non-fruit-users were with Luffy. How were the bounty hunters defeated, if what Nami told him was true…? What would happen now? Could Luffy recover from having the _kairouseki _in his body for so long?

His head felt like it would explode with the questions. He picked one out of the swarm.

"Hey, Nami, why were they after Luffy?" he finally asked.

She shook her head. "They said they wanted his bounty."

"I think what Usopp is asking is, why _only_ him?" Sanji said. He shook his head too. "I don't get it either. When we first found out what those… what they were, I assumed they wanted all of our bounties. But they didn't even want Zoro's."

"Luffy's bounty is much higher than any of ours. And since none of us figured it out until nearly too late… Maybe they were just being realistic…" Robin's disjointed flow of words belied how quickly her brain was working. The others waited for her to gather her thoughts. "If they had actually attacked all of us, with intent to kill, we would have fought back and defeated them quicker than we did. Maybe they were only after him because they thought they could only bring down one of us. So they went for the highest bounty and tried to keep the rest of us in the dark."

"What I want to know is," Franky began angrily, "is where the hell did they get so much seastone? It's not easy to obtain. It's more expensive than Adam wood!" His steel fist banged on the table without leaving a dent.

"We don't know."

The six friends seethed together for a moment, not looking at one another. Nami looked across the table to Brook to find him glaring at the floor. "What is it, Brook?"

He started from his reverie and seemed surprised to find himself on the ship. He took his teacup and sipped. "I was just… trying to recall what happened, Nami-_san_. Unfortunately, I was apparently unconscious very early in the battle. I do not even remember being attacked." His look of guilt spoke to her own. "I don't think I am a very good addition to … to your crew…"

"Don't be an idiot," Sanji said harshly, and Brook looked at him in surprise. Smoke escaped from the chef's mouth, and then he said, "He _chose_ each of us. He hasn't ever made a mistake. _Not once_." His hands were clenched.

Brook looked around the table. Nami was smiling through sudden tears tracking down her cheeks. Robin's eyes were closed and a peaceful expression was on her face, remembering. Franky wore a cocky grin. Usopp was trying to wipe away tears without anyone noticing; he once felt as Brook did, but he loathed ever feeling so now. Sanji was absolutely right. Luffy had never regretted having any one of them as a part of his crew, as his _nakama_.

Sanji smiled too. His first memory of the boy with the straw hat suddenly overtook his thoughts, and he felt like laughing. "He is quite a shitty bastard when he wants something, _ne_?"

Nami _did_ laugh at that, scrubbing her face with the back of her hand. "Oi, look at me. He'll be alright. Of course he will." Usopp's laugh joined hers, though it sounded slightly forced. Brook seemed to smile. Robin sprouted hands and refilled everyone's teacup.

The door opened, and Zoro stepped inside.

The mirth in the room was gone in the space of a heartbeat. Usopp and Sanji stood up quickly, but Zoro held up a hand before anyone could speak. They saw it was clean – devoid of blood. "Chopper kicked me out," he said, his voice whisper-like, as though he had a sore throat. He checked a sad grin. "But he's not dying. At least, not as fast as he was."

Their sighs of relief echoed one another, and Usopp sat back down, but Sanji started to walk to the door. As he neared Zoro, the first mate asked in his ragged voice, "Where are you going?"

"I have to go see him," Sanji said distractedly. "I have to… tell him…"

Zoro caught the man's arm. "He's not awake, _baka_. And Chopper kicked me out. He's not gonna let anyone back in."

Sanji was tense for a long moment, and the rest of the crew watched in case a fight broke out. Finally, the blond slumped and tore his arm from Zoro's grip. He had seen the yellow hat resting on the back of Zoro's neck. "He's not better," he accused.

Zoro passed a hand over his eyes. "I never said he was. He's just… not getting worse. For the moment." He suddenly looked wearier than Sanji had ever seen him – excluding the times the swordsman was asleep. "He's got a ways to go."

"Tch," said Sanji, walking back into the kitchen. Zoro fell into a seat. No one spoke. Sanji came out with a bottle of sake. He set it on the table in front of Zoro and sat down again. Still no one spoke.

All of their minds dwelled on Chopper and his patient.

Nearly three hours passed. The tea was gone. Robin and Sanji held a quiet conversation about the ship's food stores. Usopp left for a while and came back with black grease on his elbows and face. "I tried to work," he told Franky simply as he sat back down. He smiled sheepishly. "But I can't seem to, right now."

Nami stretched and yawned. Robin saw, and asked her if she wanted to get some rest. Blinking, Nami shook her head.

"I'll go too," Robin persisted, concerned for her friend.

"No." Nami was adamant. She didn't feel like sleeping, or missing any changes to Luffy's condition.

The dining room was quiet again. Zoro had taken off the straw hat and now held it in his lap, staring at it without seeing it. Nami's fingers drummed on the table. Usopp held his head in his hands.

The door opened again.

"He's okay," Chopper squeaked. Robin and Zoro ran to him as he collapsed, exhausted. When they had flipped him over, they saw he was sobbing. Robin pulled him close and hugged him as he cried. "I – I thought – I wasn't – gonna – "

"Shh," Nami said, walking to them and rubbing his furry back. "He's okay, though?"

"Yes," he said, controlling himself. "He's no longer unconscious. He's sleeping."

"You're the best, Chopper."

"Three cheers for the Mighty Doctor Chopper!"

"That doesn't make me happy, bastards!" Chopper wailed.

A steaming cup of tea was placed in front of the little reindeer, and he gulped it greedily. "Whoa, there, Mighty Doctor," a grinning Sanji said, pulling the cup away. "Don't you know not to drink too fast?"

Chopper managed a slightly hysterical giggle. "_Arigatou_, Sanji."

The door shut, and Zoro was gone.

"Eh?" asked Chopper, turning his head.

Sanji was watching the door. "Let him go," he murmured. He turned to smile at the rest of the crew. "How about breakfast?"

"Aye!" Chopper shouted, punching the air and grinning. It was infectious – everyone else smiled too. Yawns were hidden behind hands and eyes were rubbed. Robin gave Chopper to Nami and set the table. Sanji served more tea, then got to work on breakfast.

The sun began to rise above the eastern horizon, the first rays shooting through the kitchen portholes.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: A teeny tiny bit of Zoro angst. Ah, I felt like it. Though now I'm wondering how exactly the hell I'm gonna end this, dear reader. I was very tempted not to upload any more of what I'd written. I said I was done with story, but the urge to write was sprung upon me a few days ago just when I thought it was done and now there are at least two more chapters. What fail. Here's the first of the two.

Enjoi~

* * *

Luffy breathed.

He held onto that sight like it was his saving grace. He'd been so unsure, so afraid that his captain would stop. But now he was stable, according to Chopper, and Chopper was going to be the best doctor in the world, so he couldn't dispute it. He let the relief sink into his muscles, sluggishly working its way through his brain. His captain – his friend, his _nakama_ – was going to live.

No thanks to him, of course.

Memories of the events of the past twenty-four hours had plagued him ever since Miyoko had said those cruel words: _"Too bad you weren't there to help him, eh?"_

_Too bad_… he thought, gritting his teeth, _but I'd had every opportunity to help him_.

He remembered, back on the Thousand Sunny as they spotted Yuya on the horizon, Luffy had prepared to rocket with every intention of taking the snoozing Zoro with him, as per usual. But Zoro had heard the telltale laughter of a rubber captain about to fly and, realizing his own danger, had rolled quickly to the side to avoid the hand grabbing at his shirt. He had caught a glimpse of Luffy's disappointed, quizzical face as the rubber man's hand connected instead to something small and furry that squealed – definitely not Zoro – and then both he and Chopper were gone, sailing through the brilliant late-afternoon sky toward the island. If only he hadn't moved, he would have been with Luffy from the moment they landed… _Maybe_, he thought now, his eyes widening, _damn, that look he gave me… maybe Luffy knew something would happen. Maybe that's why he – but he _always_ takes me with him. He couldn't have known that _that_ trip would be so different… could he?_

_But, sometimes, Luffy just _knows _things,_ he answered himself, shaking his head.

And then he had _grudgingly_ offered to find his wayward captain. Merely thinking about that made his stomach ache. He remembered how much he had wanted nothing more than to continue his nap until they docked. He remembered with a pang how relieved he had been when Nami said no.

But he hadn't had to follow the devil-woman's orders; he could have easily taken Mini Merry II or a rowboat and gotten to the island faster than the ship, who cares what the bitch said. And he hadn't. He had settled back for a nap.

Then he had ignored his instincts while in that tavern. He should have been on his guard no matter what. And instead he fell asleep, and let himself be caught, wasting precious moments of Luffy's time, time the rubber man couldn't afford.

Guilt moved through him in waves, like the aftershocks of an earthquake. The tendons of his hands stood out as he clenched them subconsciously, closing his eyes and fully experiencing the remorse. A horrid voice in his head whispered that if he had been a better first mate, it wouldn't have come to this. He'd shirked his duty. He could have sliced those bounty hunters to ribbons had he been with Luffy, and no one would have gotten hurt. It was _all his damned fault._

He opened his eyes and stared at the boy on the bed. Luffy's wan face was no longer creased in pain, but his breathing was labored – he'd had a lot of internal bleeding. The black hair was dirty with blood and sweat and dust, and looked strangely unruly without the simple hat to press it down. His mouth was partially open, and the soft _whish _of the air passing through it seemed to echo in the tiny room.

Luffy breathed. That was all that mattered now.

"I'm sorry, Captain," Zoro whispered to the sleeping form. "I swore to you I'd never lose again, and I think I did tonight." He paused, rubbing the old straw of the hat's brim between the rough thumb and forefinger of his right hand. His head felt heavy, and he let the weight of his guilt pull his chin down to his broad chest.

He suddenly recalled the pain he'd endured a month ago. Luffy's pain. He winced outwardly, for no one was there to see. His eyes squeezed shut, and he fought the obnoxious urge to let the threatening tears fall. He'd come so close to losing him twice, in such a short space of time. _I'm _stronger_ than this_, he berated himself. _Luffy breathes._ It was going to be okay. They had both survived their ordeals.

He sighed and tried to relax. He meditated. It seemed to be working – his breathing steadied and his emotions were mastered.

The memory came out of nowhere.

He had tried to forget. But how could he, really, with the hat there in his hands?

"_Keep… Boshi," Luffy whispered, looking at him – or through him, all the way to his core, as he had a habit of doing – with tired eyes. Zoro was startled by the words, by the fact that his captain was alive. He'd been so sure… but this was _Luffy_, after all. How foolish of him to think his captain could be dead without first achieving his dream._

_Their eyes locked. Zoro raised a hand and lifted the hat gently off the other man's matted black hair. When Luffy could see it firmly in Zoro's hands, he smiled. "… safe…" was all he could manage with the red pouring out of the hole beneath his ribcage that Zoro had just created by removing the spear. His eyelids closed, his head falling to the side to touch his cheek to the brown stone, and the exhausted agony returned to his face. His first mate watched him slip into unconsciousness and felt sick when the agonized look remained._

In a rush of movement, Zoro grabbed the pale, limp hand. He squeezed the fingers and let go.

"Get well," he commanded his oblivious captain in his low voice.

He reclined his chair against Chopper's worktable. Seconds later, the yellow straw hat, resting on Zoro's chest, rose and fell in a gentle rhythm that matched the older man's breathing as he slept.


	10. Chapter 10

During the party that was breakfast that morning, Usopp leaned down a little to ask Chopper about Luffy's condition. The little doctor didn't answer him for a whole minute, refusing to meet his eyes.

"Oi, Chopper, did you hear me?" Usopp asked.

"Aye," the reindeer said quietly. He still didn't answer.

"What are you thinking about?"

This question seemed to make him uncomfortable. "N-n-nothing. He's gonna get better, Usopp. It's _Luffy_."

Usopp was anything but reassured after Chopper finished speaking. It sounded like the doctor was trying to convince himself as much as Usopp.

"Chopper…"

"I just – You weren't there, Usopp!" Chopper interrupted, staring at his food. The exclamation had drawn the attention of Robin and Franky, who turned their gazes to watch Chopper. "You – you didn't see… and he kept going… and I couldn't know if… if he'd… or if they'd win…"

Sanji and Nami were listening now. "Tell us what happened, Chopper," Nami said with wide eyes.

Chopper took a deep breath that caught only once and told them what he had seen. He told them how Luffy was unable to even touch the bad guys because of the _kairouseki_. He told them of the commander's annoying laughter, and of Luffy's determination. He told them how helpless he had felt. He described Luffy's power-ups to Gears Second and Third. Second had allowed him to touch the bounty hunters but he still could not fight them. And when he shifted into Gear Third –

"That was when the spear hit him. I didn't see at first." Chopper lost his train of thought, delving into memories he would never tell anyone. Sanji could guess, though – he remembered hearing the long scream on the DenDen Mushi. He bowed his head. Chopper seemed to shake himself a little and continued, "But he lost Gear Third without getting small. And then…" He trailed off. Awe crept into and filled his voice. "He kept fighting. And we won."

"How?" asked Robin, her dark blue eyes inquisitive. "I touched the spear. It _was_ made of _kairouseki_. How could he…?"

No one answered. Luffy's strengths were often beyond comprehension. His will was monstrously powerful. Was it possible that he had overcome the seastone's powers by sheer effort of will alone? Had anyone ever heard of something so impossible?

Sanji stood. "I'm gonna go check on those two, if that's okay, Chopper."

"Oi, Sanji, don't fight with Zoro in the infirmary," Chopper replied scoldingly.

"Don't fight with Zoro on the ship _at all_, _baka_," growled Nami, lightly knocking on Chopper's skull. "I don't care if it's made of Adam wood. That just makes it that much more expensive to replace when you idiots break it."

"Haaii, Nami-_san_!" Sanji called as he left the galley.

* * *

One of the bastard swordsman's eyes opened just a slit when he walked in, and then closed again. Sanji decided to ignore him. The snores quickly returned to the little room, and Sanji dragged a chair over to sit beside his captain.

He didn't say anything. He watched the smoke twine up from the smoldering end of his cigarette. He looked down through half-lidded eyes at the white bandages encasing Luffy's entire torso.

He remembered how the blood had spurted from the rubber man's gut as the spear shaft was pulled through his body. He remembered the shredded skin on the boy's arms and legs. Realizing something, he looked around the infirmary but could not find Luffy's clothes – the blood-spattered and torn vest and shorts. The sleeping captain was wearing only shorts now, but as they were clean, Sanji doubted they were the ones he'd been wearing the night before. His eyes fell upon the snoring first mate and the spotty hat that rested on the man's chest. The spots were no longer shiny red, but crusty brown. Nami-_san_ would have to wash it again.

He remembered Miyoko suddenly, for some reason. Indubitably one of the most beautiful women he'd ever seen, right up there with Nami-_san_ and Robin-_chan_. He remembered her cruelty. And he remembered what had made it _too much_.

_The shock was powerful. It almost knocked him off his feet. As Chopper's scream from the DenDen Mushi trailed off and the bounty hunter commander – damn, he could _hear_ the laugh in the man's smug voice – began again to speak, announcing their victory, Sanji let the cigarette fall from his lips. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. He was aware of the fact that his hands were shaking uncontrollably, but he could do nothing to quell them._

_The next thing he was aware of was Zoro's low voice. "Tell me, damn it," he'd said. To him? No. Zoro had never used such a murderous tone with him. Yeah, they got angry at one another, but they never –_

_But maybe Zoro blamed him too –_

_But there was Miyoko, talking to the swordsman, her back to the bar. What was she saying? "He is probably already dead. Too bad you weren't there to help him, eh?"_

_The words slammed into him like that avalanche on Drum Island, the one Luffy had pulled him out of – but that hurt too much. He stopped thinking and listened for Zoro's response. Would he yell at him? Undoubtedly the swordsman would kill him for his incompetence as soon as they were free…_

"_Liar."_

_What?_

_Oh. Denial._

"_She's not," he managed. He told Zoro what he'd heard, feeling the man's shocked and burning gaze on his face. He couldn't face him. He kept his eyes averted. Zoro made no sound, but the chef could well imagine the thoughts going through his head – accusations, truths heavy with guilt, that reflected what Sanji was already telling himself._

_Luffy was dead, and it was his fault._

_But this fact didn't force him to act as he had. This fact held no hope. No matter what he did, Zoro would kill him for killing their captain, and no matter what happened next, their grand adventure was over. He was frozen, waiting for the inevitable slash of the swords. He _wanted_ death._

_And then._

_Luffy's voice filled the room. The sound of it made Sanji lightheaded. He questioned his sanity. He wondered if Zoro had already gotten to him and killed him. Because with a _kairouseki_ spear in him, no Devil Fruit user would be able to use his powers. In fact, none would be alive to even call out the name of a move. So it was impossible that he could have heard Luffy's voice._

_Impossible…_

_But…_

_And yet…_

_Luffy did impossible things. He consumed impossibilities with more avidity than he did Sanji's best desserts. He tore through conventions like they were so many wispy cobwebs in his way. He bent reality like _it_ was rubber instead of him. So maybe there was hope. Maybe…_

_And that's when he decided to act._

"Bastard," Sanji muttered around his cigarette. Now that Luffy so obviously lived and breathed before him, he felt a little – a little! – regret for what he had done to Miyoko. Not that he would have ever acted differently than he had. While there was hope, he would keep fighting for his captain.

That's what he had decided the moment he heard Luffy's voice. As a man, he could not do any less than that, no matter who his opponent was.

He ruffled the dirty black hair and stood to leave. An apology would have to be made when Luffy awoke, but for now, Sanji was at peace.

"Don't bother."

Sanji took a drag. "What'd you say?" he asked the swordsman who was no longer pretending to sleep.

Zoro eyed him, then a small grin lit his features. "Tch, you really think he wants to hear it? After what you've done for him?"

Sanji was taken aback. The shitty swordsman couldn't possibly read his mind, could he?

"What do you mean?"

Zoro exhaled. "You've never hit a woman, ever, have you? _Baka_, when he hears what you've done – given up your principles, however retarded they may be –" he smirked, "because you didn't trust him to live… Do you think he'll want to hear that? That because he got hurt he made his cook do something to hate himself?"

Sanji didn't know what to say. Was the bastard being _deep_, or something?

"He already forgives you," Zoro said quietly, now watching Luffy sleep. A look he reserved only for his captain – one that spoke of that truest loyalty and unwavering devotion with no small measure of protective affection that he felt for the man – settled onto his face. "He can't hate you for being you. Even if you end up killing him about it."

The rivals were silent for a long moment.

"What _can_ I do?" Sanji asked finally.

Zoro understood his question. He grinned widely. "Make a _lot_ of meat."

Half of Sanji's mouth quirked up in an answering grin, and he left the room.

* * *

Zoro's snores woke Luffy in the middle of the night. The boyish captain sat up quickly, forgetting his bandages. He winced but the minor pain told him that he hadn't reopened any wounds. His stomach then told him that he'd been asleep for thirty-five meals (at five meals a day). Time for a midnight snack!

He made as though to leap out of the infirmary bed, but quickly stopped himself. Zoro was not the only snorer in the room.

Usopp and Chopper, fast asleep and dreaming, were sitting with their backs against his bed. Usopp's arms were draped around Chopper, who had forgotten to take off his hat before falling asleep. Zoro was on the floor, leaning against the wall next to Chopper's worktable. Franky was lying on the floor by the door, mumbling in his sleep. Nami, who had laid out a bedroll and was the only one with that or a blanket, slept with her feet beside Franky's head. Sanji was gracefully curled on the floor beside her, his face toward her.

Luffy grinned at his sleeping crew, relief overtaking him. Those stupid bounty hunters could never have caught this awesome crew.

The door suddenly opened. The moonlight shone to reveal Robin, who just finished her watch. Brook had taken her place and was now in the crow's nest.

"Hello, Luffy," she whispered to him, smiling.

"Robin!" he said, and one of her hands clapped over his mouth. She held a finger to her still-smiling lips and gestured to their sleeping crewmates. "Oh, right," he whispered when the hand dissolved in petals. His stomach growled more loudly than he had spoken, and Robin laughed quietly behind her hand. A bedroll was tucked under her arm, and she unrolled it on the floor in the corner beside Nami before standing and crossing her wrists. "_Viente Fleurs_," she whispered, and Luffy found himself being swung across the room by her hands, over the heads of the snorers. She deposited him outside the infirmary next to her.

"Hungry, _Senchou-san_?" she asked him.

"Very!"

Together they walked to the kitchen. Luffy ate a lot, but he fell asleep again after only a little while, his face hitting the food on his plate with a mushy thump. Robin wiped his face off and carried him back to the infirmary. She put him to bed, knowing that he needed sleep for a full recovery.

And then she lay down herself. _Finally_, she thought, _the long night has ended_.

The End.

* * *

A/N: Oh my god. It's freaking done.

... Holy cow.

*blinks*

Mmm. Anyway. Three cheers for additional usage of the title. Writing this chapter was funny, because I knew I was nearing the _actual_ end of the bloody story and I was on a roll and Sanji entered the room and I was like, "Wait. What the hell can Sanji say that won't be a repeat of Zoro's beautifully emotional soliloquy in the last chapter????"

My train of thought went soaring off a cliff to crash with fire and explosions in the forest below. I spazzed. I panicked. There was rending of clothes and gnashing of teeth and talking to myself and a hurricane. Just kidding.

So I quit Word and reopened with a blank document. And promptly wrote a plotless oneshot about Zoro. And uploaded it.

All the while, Sanji was nagging me. 'I said in Chapter 8 that I was gonna go see him! I'm suffering from severe mental trauma and guilt, here! You gotta let me go see him! I had the most life-changing experience in your shitty fanfiction and you won't even let me tie up the loose ends? What kind of crap is that?!!'

And so. I wrote the rest just as I was about to fall asleep last night. I personally edited the damn thing, just for you, dear reader, over the past hour and a half.

So I hope you liked it.


End file.
